


Stripes or Polka-Dots

by moosh



Series: Just me being obsessed with the idea of Tony Stark having a stuffed Winnie the Pooh that he loves. [1]
Category: Iron Man (Movies), Marvel Cinematic Universe, The Avengers (Marvel Movies)
Genre: F/M, Fluff, Pepper Potts Is a Good Bro, Tony Stark Has A Heart, Tony Stark Needs a Hug
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-06-02
Updated: 2018-06-02
Packaged: 2019-05-17 11:24:41
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,614
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14831372
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/moosh/pseuds/moosh
Summary: Tony is having trouble sleeping after New York. Pepper hopes that an old friend can help.





	Stripes or Polka-Dots

It had been two weeks since New York. Two weeks since Tony tumbled back to earth through a wormhole in Space. And two weeks since he’d managed to get a full night’s rest, even with the aid of sleeping pills and a few glasses of scotch.

“Leave the pills here, they’re not working anyway.” Pepper sighed as she absent-mindedly shoved some clothes into her suitcase.

“But Ambien is so much fun when you’re awake.” Tony managed a weak smile as he stared at the pill bottle in his hands.

“Tony.”

“Yeah. Yeah, you’re right.” He said, placing the bottle on his nightstand.

“Let’s go.”

As much as Tony wanted to stay in New York and feel like he was _actually_ doing something useful to aid in the clean-up, Pepper had convinced him that a few days back home might do him some good. The meetings with SHEILD were over for now, the checks had been written, and the rebuilding process had begun. He’d earned a few days back on the West Coast, right? They both had. Pepper hadn't been sleeping much either. Plus there was still plenty of scotch in Malibu.

The first night back it seemed like the change of scenery was helping - he’d always found the ocean breeze soothing. And after a single glass of scotch, he drifted to sleep as Pepper gently stroked his back and neck, trying to keep him calm.

Soon though, he was falling again. Faster and faster and faster and Hulk wasn’t there to catch him this time. He thrust out his arms to brace for impact, and shot straight out of bed, wide awake, when Pepper screamed.

He’d punched her square in the mouth.

“Oh my god, Pep, are you ok? Are you bleeding?”

Pepper was in a bit of a daze, not totally cognizant of what happened. She could taste the blood though, and could feel it starting to collect in the corner of her mouth. “Did you – did you just hit me?”

“I’m so sorry honey,” He said jumping back into the bed to assess the damage. “I was dreaming I was falling again and I wasn’t stopping and – oh god, you are bleeding, do you need stitches? JARVIS?”

“Yes sir?”

“No, I’m fine! Both of you, I’m fine.” Wearily, she wiped away some of the blood. “It’ll stop in a second.”

Tony reached out and cupped her cheek with his hand. “I’m sorry. I didn’t mean t – I would nev – God I’m a mess Pep, what’s wrong with me?”

“Nothing that can’t be fixed, I promise.” She said, running a hand through his hair.

“Are you sure you’re ok?”

“Yeah, luckily all of those boxing lessons with Happy haven’t done much to improve your form.” Pepper smiled.

Tony did not. His adrenaline was still pumping and there was a pit growing in his stomach as he began to process the fact that he’d just hit Pepper so hard that he’d drawn blood. “I’m sorry. I’m going down to the workshop.”

“No, no please stay.” She pulled him back onto the bed.  “Just lay down. We can lay here and talk for a while, wait for the sun to come up, all right?”

“Ok.”

“Ok. Let me get cleaned up.” Pepper went into the bathroom to brush her teeth and splash some water on her face. The bleeding had stopped. She prayed that there wouldn’t be a bruise in the morning – more for the sake of Tony’s guilt than for her vanity. When she emerged, she found Tony curled up on his side, hugging a pillow very close to his chest.

Her heart broke a bit, but suddenly an idea popped into her head. “I’ll be right back.” She whispered, slipping out of the room. A few minutes later she returned, hiding something behind her back. Tony hadn’t moved.

“Where’d you go?” Came his muffled voice.

“I brought you a present.” She said approaching the side of the bed and flipping on a lamp.

Tony propped himself up as she revealed the surprise, completely taken aback. “How did - Where did you find him?”

“I noticed it tucked in the corner of your safe a few years back, this seemed like a good time to spring him from his fire-proof prison.” Pepper smiled, holding out the toy.

It was Winnie the Pooh. His Winnie the Pooh. The Winnie the Pooh he’d slept with almost every night for the first 15 years of his life. His fur was matted down in some spots, his stuffing was lumpy, and one of his eyes had been replaced with a button by his nanny.

“It is yours, isn’t it?” Pepper asked, noticing his hesitation. Tony grabbed the toy and held up its left foot, revealing the bright red stitching that adorned it.

 

**A.E. Stark**

**May 29 th, 1970**

“My aunt gave him to me when I was a baby.” He smiled, bringing it back down to his lap to get a closer look.

“I thought that maybe having an old friend around would help you sleep.”

“What? No I don’t – “ His face flushed as he spoke. “- I don’t need a teddy bear I’m fine.”

“Oh please, I saw the way you were hugging that pillow a minute ago.”

“Pep, really, I appreciate it but I’m not 5 years old.”

“Well fine, if you don’t want to hang on to him, even just for one night for old times’ sake in a completely loving and judgment-free zone, I’ll just go put him back in that cold, scary, lonely steel box…” Pepper went to snatch the bear but Tony almost instinctively turned away and shielded Pooh from her grasp.

“Maybe – maybe just for tonight? Since you went through the trouble of bringing him up here.” Tony’s face flushed an even deeper shade of pink.

“You’re adorable.” She kissed his forehead while turning the lamp back off. “Plus, if you try to slug me again, maybe you’ll hit me with him instead of your fist.” Pepper climbed back into bed. “Lay down.”

“I swear to God, if you tell anyone about this – “

“I won’t. So, tell me about all about Mr. Pooh.”

“Well, he lives in the Hundred Acre Wood with all of his weird little friends, he has quite an affinity for honey, and sometimes he enjoys chasing after scary monsters.”

“Woozles are just a figment of your imagination, Mr. Stark.”

“Heffalumps though, Heffalumps definitely exist. I’ve seen them.”

Pepper laughed. “Tell me more about this _particular_ Pooh. Your aunt gave him to you?”

At this point they were laying down, facing each other. Tony was using Pooh as a pillow. His arm was wrapped around the toy and his hand was holding onto one of its paws. “Yeah. Well, I mean, Peggy gave him to me, so she wasn’t _technically_ my aunt, but she’s always been Aunt Peggy. I dragged him everywhere for the first few years. Drove my father crazy. Drove my nanny crazy – she was constantly trying to get grease and apple juice stains out of his fur and sewing him back together. When I was like 6 though my father put his foot down and decreed that Pooh wasn’t allowed to leave my bedroom. I still managed to smuggle him with me to Exeter and then to MIT, though after the first night he was quickly relegated to a shoebox in my closet.”

“Poor thing.”

“Me or Pooh?”

“Pooh.”

“You know when the last time I slept with him was?” Tony said, thoughtfully.

“Hm?”

“The night my parents died. As you know, it was a really fucked up evening. I’d just gotten home from Oxford and I was exhausted. After they left for the airport I just fell asleep on the couch watching a Rangers game. Next thing I know Jarvis – “

“Yes sir?” Tony and Pepper both chuckled.

“Not you, other Jarvis.”

“Sorry, sir.”

“It was just a whirlwind. We had to go to the police station and to the morgue and talk to so many people and I was just barely holding it together by the time we got back to the house. Jarvis disappeared to his room and then I was just alone. So, I just dug through my suitcases and found Pooh and went and curled up in their bed.”

“Peggy was the one who found you in the morning, right?”

“Yeah.”

“You’ve told me about that night dozens of times now, yet you’ve never mentioned the bear.”

Tony rolled onto his back and held Pooh in the air. “Well yeah, I couldn’t, ya know, destroy my macho façade.”

Pepper leaned over and gave him a kiss on the cheek. “I have a question.”

“Shoot.”

“So. Red and yellow. Your favorite colors. Iron Man. And all of his, well, branding…look at me with a straight face and tell me that wasn’t all based on Winnie the Pooh.”

“Well, how else was I supposed to feel safe fighting off all the heffalumps and woozles?”

“Oh my god.” Pepper snorted.

“Look, I didn’t specifically have Pooh in mind when choosing colors, but I must admit that my affinity for them had to have come from somewhere…”

“I love you.”

“I love you too. Again, one word of this to anyone…”

“My lips are sealed. I promise. Now, tell me again about your first night at MIT. This time with the deleted Winnie the Pooh scenes.”

They didn’t quite make it to sunrise, but they spent another hour or so talking. As Tony began to fade, he hugged Pooh closer and closer to his face. The scent was familiar and comforting and transported him almost instantly back to his childhood.

 He slept like a baby.

 


End file.
